Modern Vespa

Just wondering if anyone has found a suitable set of winter top layers to use for both riding and skiing.

Obviously will need to be 100% waterproof, breathable and suitably insulated for the slopes.

Personally I would prefer salopettes for the trousers because they tend to stay up better and generally offer a bit of protection to the back from the wind.


Any thoughts?

You can always ride naked. Or not*

In my case, for the sake of humanity, definitely not.

Good one!

I found that my winter commuting gear (from back when I lived in NJ) was pretty nice on the ski slopes

I like to wear motorcycle overpants (without the armor) over jeans while skiing,
similar toasty warm gloves/mittens are key for both,
and my glasses/neck gaiter/helmet setups also have a lot of elements in common
(although I recommend different helmets for each activity)

I came close to skiing in my winter riding jacket without the armor,
but I found a lovely & deeply-discounted ski jacket at the last minute
I still think it would have worked, though

My 2 cents:
Skiing is what I really know, it is my main and lifelong passion. I use to work full time as a ski instructor and I still do a ton of inbounds and backcountry skiing, averaging about 100 ski days per year. There is no such thing as as a single jacket and/or pants that can do double duty for skiing and riding - the activities are just too different. The exception might be if you really just ski 2 or 3 days out of the year - then you can probably make anything do rather than purchasing something for such little use. No winter motorcycle clothing can breath evern remotely enough to keep a skier comfortable. It may keep you well insulated when you are not moving around much and perhaps keep the high winds off of you (performing just as a motorcyclist would desire as they are not expanding much physical energy either) but as soon as you, the skier, starts moving about in a high energy / aerobic fashion, you start sweating and even high-end motorcycle gear will make you feel like you are in a cold, clammy sweatbox. Last year I mistakenly wore the insulating liner out of my Olympia AST jacket underneath my normal Gore ski shell and I have never been more miserable - designed to keep wind and cold out, doesn't allow for excess heat /sweat to escape out. On the flip side, even the highest quality ski clothing makes horrible motorcycle outerwear. 2 very different purposes and physically 2 very different activities.

I ride in the winter in Toronto, which is pretty darned cold. I have a short flyscreen which really helps keep the wind off my body as well as heated grips for my cold hands. For the rest of me I layer and layer. I have a fleece scarf, sweater, fleece jacket, insulated riding jacket, riding pants, winter gloves and riding boots. Even in sub zero temps I am fine. I think I wouldn't be able to ride without my heated grips though, they are key for me.

I love it when you talk dirty

Difficult to find clothing designed for vigorous physical activity (skiing) that's equally appropriate for sitting on a scooter.

Yup,
that did describe my circumstances pretty accurately, at least in the beginning

(I've edited out the rest because it's not worth pursuing)

Can someone from sunny Australia agree? I see lots of people who ski in moto gear - armour removed - on Aussie snow. It really doesn't work, except maybe on beginner slopes - you can see how sweated-up these folk get - and that's a recipe for hypothermia in relatively common snow weather conditions.

Eg - my bike gear and extreme ski gear are ostensibly similar Goretex, but my XCD ski suit (Mountain Designs XCR Goretex jacket + salopettes) probably wouldn't keep me dry on a moto, and my goretex / kelvar moto touring suit (BMW Tourguard goertex / kevlar + armour) wouldn't breathe nearly well enough on a lift-assisted telemarking day, let alone a backcountry tour.

Mainly, even though our ski fabrics are tough-ish (we tend to use tough taslan nylons here as outer fabrics) they still wouldn't take a road hit at all well. Good moto suits have reinforcing layers or aramid (kevlar) on hit points in addition to armour. Moto suits also have much better storm coverage to withstand rain forced in at 100mph - which ski suits don't need. So your only safe option is to use you moto gear to ski - not vice versa.

My argument (and I'm winning so far) is that if I still fit in my gear (sometimes a struggle .. ) all this gear will last years - so if you've cash and space to have both, you'll get the use from each of them (helps to buy a timeless style!) .. naturally, this argument extends to 3 moto suits, 2 scooter jackets (different colours), a few pairs of scoot / moto jeans and numerous boots and gloves ...

I ride in winter. I have heated grips plus a windscreen on the vespa, heated grips plus handguards on the mana to keep my hands warm. For clothing my wife and I use heated gloves and socks. I either wear my race leathers with an N3B parka (military issue for soldiers in very cold climates) over or when it's warmer (or wetter) I wear the Moto Guzzi Norge suit. The norge suit is super warm and probably the most water resistant piece of clothing I own.

BTW, I'm big on having armor, abrasion resistance and a material that won't melt on impact. The armor I like because is dissipates the force of an impact, the abrasion resistance I like because my skin is very important to me and I am big on having a material that will not melt and stick to my skin when I crash. Look to see what happens with a lot of textiles if the crash is over about 40mph. It's not pretty.

I have a The North Face jackets that I use for winter riding and snow-sports. It is 100% waterproof and has zipper vents you can unzip a little or a lot, depending on the climate.

It is this one. http://www.zappos.com/the-north-face-mens-hooded-venture-jacket-zinc-grey

I'd recommend it.

I wear waterproof ski pants over my Draggin' Jeans in the winter. If it's really cold, I'll add some thermals, but more the most part, that's all I need.

I have heated grip wraps which I use from time to time.

I wear my regular mesh armored jacket with liner on the outside. Underneath, I layer as appropriate but. on top of the layers and right under the jacket I always wear something absolutely windproof. Otherwise the wind eventually cuts right through all the other layers at speed.

My windproof layer? Just a cheap vinyl rain jacket.

I have been looking at these Aerostich Windstopper Jackets though:

http://www.aerostich.com/off-and-riding/clothing/shirts-and-jerseys/aerostich-windstopper-jersey.html

http://www.webbikeworld.com/Motorcycle-clothing/Motorcycle-clothing.htm

It's all there; scroll down to the winter clothing section, or padding section, or heated clothing section, or thermal underwear section, or...

The jackets that I use for both are the North Face Mammatus and a Patagonia Stretch Element - with an Arcteryx Atom LT under (perfect collar height for use with a helmet). The shells are both windproof/waterproof and do a great job for scootering, snowboarding or mountaineering.